On Feb. 5, GDS opened the 2024 Identity Show, a studio arts exhibition focused on sharing aspects of students’ identities and personal backgrounds through art.
The Identity Show features pieces by all studio arts students. The works range from drawings and paintings to photos and posters, as well as ceramics and custom-designed t-shirts.
“The Identity Show is a huge part of the GDS mission: to be inclusive, and to learn from others’ culture and experiences,” said studio arts teacher Tuan Nguyen.
Junior Abby Quinn-Shores explores and connects to her Korean identity through ceramics. “I really like working with my hands,” she said, “either sculpting vases or making designs on them.”
Quinn-Shores’ piece in the show features a lion’s head, inspired by the traditional Korean Lunar New Year lion dance. The back reads “새해 복 많이 받으세요,” a common Korean New Year’s greeting.
She said that she had already wanted to make something with a lion’s head, as well as something Lunar New Year-related, and realized that the two would work together nicely as an identity project. “I’m adopted, so I don’t really get to celebrate [Lunar New Year] as much,” she said. “My whole family here is all white. I want to get more connected to my Korean side, since I can’t connect as much here, and am hoping to do so through art.”
Along with ceramics, the show features photos taken by photography students.
Freshman Nathan Tureck reflected on his Jewish identity in his photo, entitled “Light,” which displays a menorah with a single lit candle. “My whole family is Jewish, and my great-grandparents are really big role models to me,” he said. “They survived the Holocaust and came to the U.S. after. It really motivates me that they stayed positive throughout everything.”
Across from the photo gallery are t-shirts designed by the students of Intro to Drawing and Painting. Freshman Matias Sevak’s piece was inspired by watching daredevil shows with his dad. “I think it’s super important to express yourself in ways that you usually can’t through art,” he said. His design features explosions, bears and Evel Knievel.
Senior Alex Marchand created a piece in a nontraditional medium. His work, entitled ”This Is Your Brain On Games,” is a 3D model of a Nintendo Game Boy projecting a hologram of a pair of eyes and a brain.
Marchand detailed his process of reusing models of eyes and a brain from a previous project. The organs are designed to look like they are coming out of the console to represent his focus on the game. “I had fun with it. I got to experiment with and get better at some techniques,” he said.
Marchand has been honing his 3D modeling skills since he was ten.“Seven years later, I am now okay at it,” he said.
Masks created by 3D Modeling and Design students are projected on a TV outside the science hallway. In the past, the class has used 3D printers to create their designs with plastic. However, due to the increased size of the class this year, Nguyen decided to display their work digitally to save time and resources.
Nguyen encourages all GDS students to visit the Identity Show. “I think that every student put a lot of heart and thoughtfulness into their pieces,” he stated. “What’s unique about the Identity Show is that they have to take risks and be vulnerable in sharing a little piece of who they are to the GDS community. That takes a lot of courage.”
The exhibition will remain open until March 21.